Thailand has moved up in the rankings in terms of YouTube watch time, retaining its place in the top 10 in 2016, aided by cheaper smart devices and burgeoning telecom infrastructure.

The ranking, revealed by Google Thailand, shows the mobile-first preference of Thai viewers and their fondness for sharing content and engaging with social media. Since Google Inc does not have a policy on conducting official rankings, the results were rough estimates.

"Thais have watched 1.7 hours of video daily on Google's YouTube this year, up from 1.1 hours last year," said Pete Nuchanatanon, head of marketing at Google Thailand.

Up to 65% of YouTube watch time in Thailand is spent on mobile devices, up from 52% last year, he said.